


safe

by sleeponrooftops



Series: lifeboats [2]
Category: The Almighty Johnsons
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-07
Updated: 2013-04-07
Packaged: 2017-12-07 17:47:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,082
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/751282
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sleeponrooftops/pseuds/sleeponrooftops
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mike is alone for four years before suddenly, one day, he isn’t.</p>
            </blockquote>





	safe

**Author's Note:**

> A few small discrepancies —
> 
> i. Look, a series! I seem to have an affinity for these things, and it’s kind of getting out of hand. I just—I hate chaptered fics, and they hate me, and I never finish them, so I do series instead, write obnoxiously long oneshots and small little fics that can standalone, and so I trick myself. Anyway, this series in particular came about because of the de-aged!Anders fic I wrote, _i was your little life raft_. This is the _lifeboats_ series, and it will be detailing, mostly in Mike’s point of view, the boys as they grow up. That said, while these are primarily in Mike’s point of view, when he’s still young, I’m not going to write in the dialect of a child unless it’s dialogue.
> 
> ii. On the ages, I just recently learned Mike, Ty, and Axl’s age, but it seems Anders remains a mystery, and thus, he is four years younger than Mike. So, at their current adult ages, they would be: Mike (37), Anders (33), Ty (29), Axl (21). I’ll probably state—subtly—how old they are in the different fics—or even not subtly—but the math is there in case you want to do it.

Mike starts remembering things a few months after his second birthday, things like how exciting and fun the playground is, how much he loves dogs, and how terrifying the dark is at night.  He’s three before it really starts to bother him, but his father screams and swears everytime he peeks inside his parents’ room at night, and so he just holds on tightly to his teddy after the first few times and squeezes his eyes shut, trying to block out the darkness.

 

The first time he has a nightmare, he runs sobbing from his room into his parents’, and they’re moving strangely under the blankets, but Mike’s soft crying brings them to a stop, and his father stomps out of the bed, pushes him from the room, and slams the door shut.  Mike stares at the wood for long minutes, tears streaming down his face, before he brings teddy back into his room and cries himself to sleep.

 

On his fourth birthday, he wishes for a dog to stay with him at night and keep the monsters away, but all he gets is some new clothes and a pair of Converse, no birthday party but a cake, his dad passed out on the sofa long into the night.  He listens to the sounds that night, clutching tightly to teddy when the floorboards creak outside of his room, and the door opens.  Mike sobs into teddy, hiding his face, but then his mother’s soothing voice settles him, and she flicks on his light, coming over.  “I have two surprises for you,” she whispers when she sits next to him and he crawls over into her lap.

 

“Surprises?” he asks, lower lip trembling, and she nods, smoothing back his hair and kissing his temple.

 

When she leans back, she lifts a little nightlight in her hand and switches it on.  “This will keep the monsters away, okay?”

 

“Really?” Mike asks, staring at it with wide eyes.

 

“Really,” his mum promises, “When it’s dark in the room, you just turn it on, and there’ll be a little light to keep you safe.”

 

“What’s my other surprise?”

 

His mum beams, taking one of his hands and lowering it to her belly.  “Do you feel that?” she asks, and he stares at her belly in shock when something kicks his hand.  “You’re going to have a little brother or sister soon,” she says, “And he or she can sleep in here, but you’ll have to protect them, right?”

 

“Right,” Mike says, looking down at her belly with determination.  After a moment, he leans his head down against it and whispers, “I’ll keep you safe, brother.”  His mum smiles and kisses his hair, holding back tears as she listens to her husband stir downstairs.

 

Grandpa comes over when his mum starts screaming one day, and Mike remembers how she showed him what to do in case of emergencies, so he fumbles with the phone until grandpa picks up, and then there’s an ambulance, and grandpa is driving Mike to the hospital.  They play games in the waiting room until a doctor appears, and grandpa carries him to his mum, who is smiling through her tears, a little bundle wrapped in her arms.  “Mike,” she says when she sees him, and Mike squirms in grandpa’s arms, “Come here, sweetie.”Grandpa sets him down on the bed, warning him to be careful, and he crawls up next to his mother, peeking into the blue bundle.

 

“What is it?” he asks, staring curiously down at the tuft of blonde hair atop a chubby face, brilliant blue eyes looking back at him.

 

“Your baby brother,” his mum whispers.

 

“What’s his name?”

 

“Anders.”

 

Mike smiles and reaches forward, taking one of the baby’s hands, and he giggles when the baby wraps his tiny fingers around his little hand.  “Hello, Anders.  I’m your big brother, Mike, and I’m gonna keep you safe.  I promise,” he says softly before leaning forward and kissing him on the head like his mother always does.

 

His mum doesn’t leave the hospital for a few days, but Mike is busy at home helping grandpa get everything ready in his room.  He cleans up his toys so that baby Anders will have room for his crib and changing table.  He draws pictures while grandpa sets up everything, and he tapes them to the wall next to Anders’ crib.  When his father leaves to get his mum and his new brother, Mike begs and pleads until grandpa takes him out, and they get home just before his parents.  Mike races upstairs while his grandpa helps his mother inside, and, when he gets inside his room, he hurries over to the crib and struggles to reach over the high edge, dropping a teddy bear inside.  He looks sternly at the teddy and says, “We gotta keep my brother safe, okay?  Teddy will help, too, but you’re part of the family now, like him, so you have to do your part.”  His father says that all the time, and he doesn’t really know what it means, but he thinks it’s the right thing to say.

 

After he’s finished with Anders’ teddy, he waits patiently in the middle of the room until his mum brings baby Anders inside, and he fidgets with excitement, watching as she shows him around.  Finally, though, his mum comes over to the rocking chair and pats it, saying, “Hop up, and you can hold him.”

 

Mike scrambles onto the rocking chair and squirms until his mum kneels before him, and then he’s still as a statue, holding out his arms.  She helps him get the right position, and tells him to lean back, and he holds Anders carefully, his little arms wrapped around him.  His mum watches on, and Mike sniffles back tears because he’s finally not alone, and he’s _so happy_.

 

That night, after his mum puts Anders to bed and leaves the room, Mike goes over to the crib and wraps his fingers around the bars, staring in.  After a little while, he goes to turn off the light, flips on the nightlight, and comes back to the crib, whispering, “Don’t worry, the little light keeps us safe from the monsters, and I’ll protect you, too, Anders.  Nothing is going to hurt you, ever.”  He reaches in and touches one of his tiny hands lightly.  He whispers goodnight and pads back over to his own bed, holding teddy as he falls asleep, and he dreams peacefully.

**Author's Note:**

> OH MY GOD, I can already tell I’m going to love this series. THIS IS SO FREAKING CUTE. I’m sorry, I know, tooting my own horn, but I can’t help it. I feel like these are going to come quickly, too, especially with the short length, so look out for another one soon, and don’t forget to leave your thoughts!


End file.
